The 2024 Malaysian Grand Prix was marked by a small controversy between Andrea Iannone and Alvaro Bautista. The Italian rider, returning to MotoGP after a suspension, claimed to have been faster than Bautista during his wild-card in 2023. A statement that did not leave the double Superbike world champion unmoved…
Andrea Iannone closed the 2024 Malaysian Grand Prix with a penultimate place, just in front Lorenzo Savadori. After five years away from the MotoGP circuits, it was predictable that he would struggle to find his rhythm again. Despite this, the rider from Abruzzo tried to take advantage of this opportunity offered by the Pertamina Enduro VR46 team, replacing Fabio DiGiannantonio.
After the race, Iannone shared his impressions of the physical difficulty of piloting modern prototypes. Doing those 19 laps was really tiring. Already on the fifth lap my arms were hurting. I ran the entire race in survival mode. One lap I was slow, then the next I pushed and so on. The goal was to finish the race " he said, highlighting the challenges he faced.
More Iannone did not hesitate to compare his performances to those ofAlvaro Bautista, who had also participated in the Malaysia as a wild card the previous year. I was 15 seconds faster than Bautista last year with an almost identical bike ", asserted Iannone, adding that the Spaniard had had time to adapt, while he was still packing his bags to go to Sepang.
Alvaro Bautista: “ I'm three seconds faster...and injured »
Baptist, learning of his colleague's comments, quickly responded. In fact, I was two minutes faster than him…with one lap less. If you take one lap off my time to make 19 Like him, I am three seconds faster… and injured " he retorted, recalling that he had suffered an injury during the Superbike tests at Jerez, which had affected his performance at Sepang.
The double world champion Superbike also added that he had run with a cervical hernia, which further complicated his physical condition. He concluded by emphasizing that comparisons between him and Iannone based on their performance at Sepang made no sense and that it was better to concentrate on the next seasons and the spectacle they could offer in the SBK championship.
This slight verbal confrontation between Iannone et Baptist could turn into a healthy rivalry, provided they both find their form and rhythm on the track.
Qualifications: Bautista 1'59.418 – Iannone 1'58.183
Sprint: Bautista 20’35.214 (10 laps) – Iannone 20’15″128 (10 laps)
Race: Bautista 40'52.701 (20 laps) – Iannone 38'52”.162 (19 laps)
